


For Better or Worse

by gay_for_rey1999



Category: Archie Comics, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-17
Updated: 2017-07-17
Packaged: 2018-12-03 13:21:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11533086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gay_for_rey1999/pseuds/gay_for_rey1999
Summary: A series of snapshots throughout Betty's first pregnancy





	For Better or Worse

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on tumblr @gay-for-rey1999 and @juglovesbetty

Betty wakes up before Jughead, as she usually does. Today is different, though. Today is Betty’s day off. Being an award-winning journalist has its ups and downs; her schedule is always incredibly busy, leaving her with only one day off each week, but she loves her job. Jughead, on the other hand, spends his days writing new novels in their shared apartment in New York. His first one was a huge success, and paid for the high costs of living in the city.  
Pulling out the ingredients for pancakes, Betty turns cooking breakfast into a one-woman production of Abbey Road. Always a sucker for the Beatles, she sings lead vocals, backup vocals, guitar solos, and drum patterns as she whisks the batter together.  
Jughead walks in, just as Betty is beginning to make coffee. He walks up behind her, snaking his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her head.  
“Smells delicious, babe,” he sighs sleepily into her hair. Jughead never imagined he would end up here, in a high-end apartment in the city with the love of his life making pancakes in the kitchen. Yet here they are, despite everything life threw at the pair. Their love for each other only grew stronger through each hardship they faced.  
“I was just about to start the sausages,” Betty giggles. Sleepy Jughead is her favorite Jughead. Well, every Jughead is her favorite, but he gets especially affectionate when he’s tired.  
“You are a literal angel,” Jughead replies, clutching his heart for dramatic effect.  
Betty turns to put the frozen sausage patties on the pan, but immediately freezes, green eyes widening.  
“What’s wrong, Betts?” He asks, suddenly worried.  
Betty doesn’t respond. Instead, she bolts for the bathroom, where Jughead hears her vomiting. He follows her immediately, and pulls her hair back from her face as she convulses over the toilet.  
“That seriously came out of nowhere,” Betty laughs as she wipes her mouth with the nearest hand towel. “I feel fine now. Oh shit! The pancakes!” She tries to get up and hurry back to the kitchen, but Jughead stops her.  
“I’ll finish breakfast. You need to rest. You’ve been burning the candle at both ends all week.”  
Betty sits at the dining table, doing quick math inside her head. Her period is a week and a half late. Could she be pregnant? But she’s on the pill. Thinking fast, she looks up the success rates of birth control and finds that about 9% of women on the pill get pregnant every year.  
“Hey, Jughead?” She calls out nervously. “I think I just realized something.”  
“What’s up, buttercup?”  
“I think I might be pregnant. My period is late and I just threw up out of nowhere and I feel fine again. And birth control is only about 91% effective.” Betty is starting to panic, prompting Jughead to intervene.  
“Whoa, Betts, slow down. Deep breaths.” They had talked about having children before, but they were always such an abstract concept. Now there is the distinct possibility of their hypothetical family becoming a reality, and Jughead is a little overwhelmed, too. “Do you want me to run down to Walgreens and get a test?”  
“Yeah. Yeah we can take it together.” She sounds more certain now, her voice sturdier.  
“Just remember, I love you no matter what,” Jughead tells her as he walks through the door.  
\---  
“This is the longest three minutes of my life,” Betty grumbles as she and Jughead wait for the pregnancy test on the counter to change their lives.  
“I guess I’ll just have to distract you, then,” Jughead replies cheekily, pulling her in for a kiss. When they break apart, Betty’s eyes are full of tears.  
“Are you sure you’re not going to change your mind if it’s positive?” She sniffles, unable to meet his eyes.  
“Betty, darling, look at me.” She does what he says and his face is full of pure, unadultured love. “I love you more than anything. And if the test is positive, I’ll love our little bean just as much.” He’s cut off by the timer on his phone.  
“No matter what it says, our lives are about to change forever,” Betty states grimly. “On the count of three. One…. two…. three.”  
They look at the stick together and a pink plus stares back at them.  
“Oh my god, Betty,” Jughead starts, happy tears forming in his eyes as he picks her up and twirls her around. “A baby, we’re going to have a baby!”  
\---  
“And there’s the heartbeat!” The ultrasound technician announces happily. No matter how many times it happened, hearing their baby’s heartbeat was the most exciting part of Betty’s pregnancy so far. “Do you want to find out the sex?”  
Betty and Jughead pause for a moment. This is the one thing they hadn’t discussed yet.  
“I kind of want the surprise,” Betty said hesitantly.  
“Whatever you want, darling. You’re the one carrying our baby,” Jughead replied lovingly.  
They start thinking of names on the car ride home.  
“I kind of like Scout for a girl,” Jughead suggests. “She was such a strong character for a little kid.”  
“What about Sodapop for a boy? And before you laugh, what would a Jones kid be without an odd name?”  
“I don’t know, Betty. As much as I love The Outsiders, I don’t want our kid to be made fun of. It was hard enough being called Jughead, even though it was a nickname. But it might be a fun middle name. That way we could call him Sodapop but he can choose if he wants to go by his first name when he’s old enough.”  
“I like the way you think, Jughead Jones,” Betty giggles. “I really like the name Eleanor for a girl. I always have.”  
“We still have plenty of time to decide. In the meantime, I think we have some calls to make,” he says as they pull into their parking spot at their building.  
“Oh, god. My mother is going to be unbearable. She already doesn’t approve of us living together, even though we’re 26. She’ll lose her mind over premarital children. Let’s just elope.” The last three words slip out of her mouth unexpectedly.  
“Betty Cooper, are you proposing to me?” Jughead asks with a shit eating grin on his face, walking around to her door to open it.  
“I suppose I am,” Betty replies, slightly dazed. “Jughead Jones, will you do me the honor of becoming my husband?”  
“I thought you’d never ask.” They embrace in a passionate kiss, wanting to relish the moment for as long as possible before facing the wrath of Alice Cooper.  
\---  
The ceremony is short, taking place in the morning at City Hall. Veronica and Archie are their witnesses. The ring Jughead presents to Betty is one they picked together: a thin silver band with an emerald surrounded by a small opal on each side. Jughead’s is a plain silver band to match.  
When the couple arrives back at their apartment, they are greeted with the sight of Alice Cooper sitting at their dining table.  
“Mom?” Betty starts hesitantly, not sure if they are about to be congratulated or scolded.  
“So you eloped,” Alice states coldly, not meeting her daughter’s eyes.  
“Mom it’s not what-”  
“No, I know, Elizabeth. It’s your life, and you’re going to do what you want. Do you know how I found out? From Fred Andrews. I find out from my next door neighbor that my daughter is getting married.” There are tears forming in her eyes as her voice cracks.  
“Alice, the only people we told were Veronica and Archie because they were our witnesses,” Jughead interjects. “And we only told them a week in advance. We wanted this to be a quiet affair, away from people who would judge us for our current situation,” he continues, resting his hand on Betty’s swollen belly.  
“We wanted to tell you in person, but we’ve been too busy to make the trip out to Riverdale,” Betty insists. “Please, we just want you to be happy for us.”  
Alice, unable to find words, simply takes a deep breath and nods.  
“As long as you two are happy, I have no right to judge,” she admits after a long pause. “I do need to get back home, though. I have an important meeting in the morning. I love you Elizabeth, and you too, Jughead.”  
Betty and Jughead look at each other in shock as Alice makes her way through the door and down the hall.  
\---  
“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Jughead asks his very pregnant wife as he packs an overnight bag for a book signing event upstate.  
“It’s only one night, Juggie. We’ll be fine,” Betty repeats for the umpteenth time in the last hour. “I’ll call you if anything happens.”  
Betty all but kicks him out the door as he drops one last kiss to her stomach. She waddles into the kitchen for a glass of water, when her water breaks suddenly. She grabs her phone and calls Jughead straight away.  
“Betty? Is everything okay?” Jughead sounds panicked when he picks up.  
“Yeah, everything is fine. My water just broke,” Betty replies flippantly.  
“I haven’t even left the building. I’ll be up in 2 minutes. Hang in there, I love you,” he says hurriedly.  
Two minutes later, just as promised, Jughead is back in the kitchen, very out of breath.  
“You got the bag?” Betty nods, and the two share a grin. “Good. Let’s go have a baby.”  
\---  
“It’s a girl!” The doctor exclaimed as Betty gave her final push. The labor was long and painful, but it was worth it to bring their daughter into the world.  
The doctors quickly busy themselves with cleaning her up, and Jughead gazes lovingly at the goddess before him.  
“You did great,” he soothes, stroking Betty’s hair. “I’m so proud of you.”  
The doctor hands the tiny pink bundle that is their baby to Betty.  
“Welcome to the world, Eleanor Scout Jones,” Betty whispers adoringly to the little bean in her arms, voice breaking slightly. “Mommy and Daddy love you so much.”  
Eleanor’s mouth forms a delicate O shape as she lets out a yawn. Betty passes her over to Jughead, who has tears forming in his eyes.  
“She’s so beautiful. I’ve never seen anything more perfect in all my life,” he chokes out, unable to tear his eyes away from the tiny person he helped create.  
“She has your lips,” Betty sighs.  
“And your nose,” Jughead adds. “Hey, Scout. I’m your daddy. We’re gonna have so much fun driving your mommy insane, yes we are.” Betty let out a soft giggle. Her heart filled with joy watching her small family.  
“We’re a family, Juggie. Like officially and everything.” The realization hits her hard, as tears stream down her cheeks.  
“We’ve always been a family, Betty,” Jughead answers, excitement and love clouding his features.  
“Ever since we were 16, I’ve dreamt of a little girl with wild dark curls and bright green eyes.”  
“This is, by far, the happiest day of my life,” Jughead states firmly.


End file.
